Schools

Work on Carleton College's Second Wind Turbine Starts

The wind turbine is expected to be in operation by Oct. 21.

Installation of second wind turbine starts today, according to Eric Sieger, Carleton director of media relations.

The turbine will be about 1/4-mile southeast of the and about one mile east of Carleton College on Hwy. 19. The location was chosen due to its superior wind strength and elevation, close proximity to campus, and minimal impact on nearby homes, local ecology, and public recreation areas, Sieger said.

It's expected to be in operation by Oct. 21. A dedication is planned for that day.

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Carleton’s new wind turbine will provide power directly to Carleton’s electrical grid. The proposed output is expected to be 5,000 MW - 5,800 MW of power per year, reducing the College’s annual consumption of purchased electricity by 30-40 percent, according to Sieger.

"With a footprint of less than one-quarter acre, the new turbine will serve one-third the annual power needs of nearly 2,000 full-time students plus hundreds of staff and faculty with energy that need not be mined, processed, stored nor transported across the country," Sieger wrote in an e-mail. "This project falls into the category of Community Based Energy Development (C-BED) initiatives—projects that foster generation of clean renewable energy within the local community (in Carleton’s case, less than one mile from campus)."

Transmission lines for the wind turbine will be routed along Hwy. 19 across Spring Creek Road and tie in directly into the campus electrical grid. Access to the wind turbine will be provided by a gravel road located on an existing field road off of Hwy. 19. The site is in Rice County’s Urban Reserve Zone in an area that the City Comprehensive Plan has indicated for “Conservation Development.”

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The Northfield City Council the turbine in December 2010, which followed with approval from the Rice County Board of Commissioners.

Sieger says the turbine was made possible by a gift from Laurie Weiss Kracum ’76 and Richard Kracum ’76 of Chicaco.


THE SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 23 – Crane erection
Saturday, Sept. 24 – Down tower installation (boring, just large bolts and such installed at base)
Monday, Sept. 26 – Base/midsection delivered (will have 2 hour notice prior to delivery); possible erection; Nacelle (machine head/gear box/generator) delivered
Tuesday, Sept. 27 – Blades delivered/erection
Wednesday-Thursday, Sept. 28-29 – Erection complete
Over next 2-3 weeks – electrical connections completed/testing
Oct. 21 – Up and running/dedication


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